Alter World
by halfmyheart
Summary: It was simple, his mind could forget his past but his heart couldn’t.
1. End Game

Disclaimer: Yeah, it's right up there with world domination...

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Silver City, 5021

The rain fell heavily to the ground in icy black sheets as the man stood silently in the shadows, trying desperately to become one with them. He could hear his pursuers in the distance moving closer and closer with every agonizing heartbeat. Sweat beaded on his forehead and he swiped at it with a trembling hand.

_Damn them all!_ He thought.

He reached into his pocket and fished out a small glass object, just to assure himself that it was still there. He rubbed his thumb over it, almost lovingly, before shoving it deep into his jeans pocket and checking his watch. He licked his lips nervously as the sound of those following him closed in on his hiding spot. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he launched himself from the side of the building and dashed across the open park in the opposite direction; hoping that the Guardians had not yet abandoned their latest haunt.

He heard a disheartening shout from behind him and the pounding of dozens of feet as his pursuers spotted him streaking through the barren moonlit park and gave chase. He urged his feet to move faster when he heard them turn their bloodthirsty dogs loose, but they refused to obey him. Pain sliced through him as one of the dogs collided with his back and ripped at the unprotected flesh with its unnaturally sharp fangs. He fell to the hard cement of the park's path, the rough pavement biting into his palms and arms as he tried unsuccessfully to scramble away from the horrible brute. But another dog jumped on him as well and bit at his arms with savage force, causing him to cry out in agony. He rolled away from the pavement, and the early morning dew that clung to the grass stung his torn and burning flesh.

The man was vaguely aware of his hunters laughing as they approached him and called off the dogs. Sated and happy, they trotted a few paces away to keep watch. He heard one of them fling a curse at him but he was already too far gone to understand the words. With all that was left of his strength he pushed the small glass object deeply into the earth beneath him, hoping against hope that it didn't fall into the wrong hands. Then he smiled up at the sneering men above him as all sight and sound faded from his blank mind, and he breathed his last ragged breath.

------

Danica sat hunched over her computer, her shoulder length brown hair falling into her eyes as she stared at the words scrolling slowly across the screen. The news of the manhunt had already leaked to the press and they were wasting no time in getting it out to the rest of the world. As she read, her face was a mask of calm but on the inside she was screaming. How could the police force be so brutal to civilians? Hunting them down and turning their dogs on them like they were some sort of prey. It was unethical and only proved just how corrupt the modern governmental system had become.

She sighed. That sort of thing had been going on for years now. The police were no longer the protectors they had once been. Instead, they were the hunters in the world's most dangerous game. Hunt down the ordinaries and the Guardians and tear them apart one by one. It had been that way since…well since the Insurrection a thousand years before when the TEP had unveiled its master plan…but that was all in the past and it wouldn't do any good to dwell on it now.

There were bigger things at stake now. The police might have gotten rid of Gavin, but Tristan was still out there. They had to find him; he held the key to the ultimate destruction of the TEP…or of the world, depending on who got their hands on it first. She cursed as she viciously shut the computer off and went in search of Asher. If anyone knew where Tristan had gone, his twin brother Asher would.

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Silver Hills, 2005

Wes knew something was coming, he could feel it in his bones. He wasn't sure if it was a product of the 'accident' or whether his sixth sense had just kicked in, but he knew that something bad was about to happen.

"Eric," he mumbled to his partner's back.

Eric turned from his computer to stare at Wes, concern registering in his dark eyes. "What is it Wes?"

"I don't know. I just have a bad feeling…" He rubbed his face wearily with his hands, trying to rid himself of the horrible feeling that had settled over his stomach.

"Like the last time?" Eric frowned and shook his head. The last time Wes had a 'bad feeling' all hell broke loose in Silver Hills and it had taken three teams of former rangers to destroy the evil that had arisen there.

Wes shrugged and unzipped his jacket as the room suddenly felt much warmer than it had a few moments before. "No, it's not as clear as the last time…I just know something is coming, and I don't think we're going to like it."

"We never do. Go home and get some rest," suggested Eric. "You'll feel better…and maybe you should go see the doc again. He said he wanted to see you next time you had another 'feeling'."

"Yeah, sure." Wes nodded and stood, grabbing his hat, he turned back to the man across the room from him. "Just tell my dad I wasn't feeling too good if he asks why I left…just don't tell him what I told you, I don't want him worrying over nothing."

Eric nodded, "Just go already."

Wes crossed the room in as few strides as possible and headed for the elevator. He felt trapped inside, almost claustrophobic.

_Odd, I don't get claustrophobic…_

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, but in actuality was only a few seconds, the metal doors banged open and he stepped out into the reception area. Hurriedly, he made his way towards the glass doors at the end of the room and slid through them, almost knocking over a delivery man as they tried to go through at the same time. The cool air outside rushed past him and cooled his burning face. He breathed deeply, filling his lungs with the scent of wild flowers and pollution.

Almost immediately upon exiting the air conditioned building he started to perspire. The sweltering summer heat was at it most glorious as the temperature hovered around 100 degrees. There were times when Wes wondered why he stayed here, in the Ninth Circle of Hell, when it was so much cooler in other place this time of year. The heat of the day and the brightness of the sun made the massive headache that had settled behind his eyes throb with renewed intensity.

_Just another day in paradise._

He smiled wearily at a receptionist who was returning from lunch as he made his way across the parking lot, pushing his sunglasses onto the bridge of his nose as he went. It was then that he realized how hot he felt, and it wasn't just from the summer heat.

_Almost like I suddenly have a fever, _he thought. _Maybe I should get that appointment with the Doc; this could be a serious side effect from the accident._

He couldn't quite place the feeling that had settled in the pit of his stomach. He knew that it was most likely brought on by his newly enhanced power of foresight, a side-effect of a tragic Bio Lab accident that had claimed the lives of five brilliant scientists. It didn't give him the power of ESP, that wasn't the way it worked. He couldn't see the future precisely but he always knew when something bad was going to happen, and this time he just knew it was something cataclysmically bad. Perhaps the fever was the first signs of something deeper, something horrifically wrong.

_Yeah, like you're going to grow a third eye or spout wings! Get a grip, Wes!_

Shuttering slightly as a strong breeze suddenly picked up, he re-zipped his jacket and quickened his pace. He spotted his motorcycle parked between two of Bio Lab's black SUV's and swore under his breath. Didn't they know that they weren't supposed to park by the curb with the motorcycles?

_Obviously not_, he thought as he fumbled through his pocket for his keys. His hand closed around the cold metal just as a bloodcurdling scream ripped through the silent air around. Startled, the keys fell from his hand and landed with a loud clash on the pavement.

_What the hell?_

He quickly switched into warrior mode as he picked up his keys and crept towards the origin of the noise.

_Yeah Collins, that's it. Just walk straight into…whatever it is…good plan!_

Knocking that small, nagging voice to the back of his mind, he slowly he crept forward until he was crouching behind a pile of crates. Easing the top crate aside he peeked through the small hole. Lying face down ten feet away, half concealed by another pile of crates, was a man dressed all in black.

Cautiously, looking around for any signs of danger Wes moved forward on his hands and knees. He reached out to expertly search for a pulse. Finding one he breathed a sigh of relief.

He raised his morpher to his lips and started to tell Eric to send for an ambulance when a hand shot out from nowhere and grabbed his arm, pulling him forward until he was lying next to the man on the ground.

"The Guardians! Must…find….Guardians…" The man's breathing was labored and his words were low and slurred.

"Guardians? What? We…" Wes was confused. He tried to snatch his arm out of the man's grasp but he was too strong. Instead he felt the cold hand tighten around his wrist as the man pulled him closer, speaking into his ear.

His words came quicker, more urgent as his breathing became more labored. "They mustn't find it. The Guardians must stop them! They are the only chance we have! Please, don't let them find it."

Wes felt something cold and hard being pressed into his palm, but in the man's death grip he couldn't look to see what is it was.

"Please, give it to the Guardians; they'll know what to do…" His grip loosened as he fell backwards. "Please…..Danica…Asher…"

Wes brushed the man's hand away and shuddered as he picked himself up off the ground, ready for a fight. But a quick glance at the man told him that there was no need. The man, his blue eyes now hollow and unseeing, stared lifelessly up at the midday sun. Forcing himself not to retch at the sight of the dead man, he looked instead at the object in his palm. It was a smooth round stone, warm to the touch and calming to the senses.

_I don't get it. What could we possible do…I don't know what to do with it…_

Then that feeling that something was coming came crashing back to him with the weight of an anvil as the stone began to grow hot in the palm of his hand.

Wes dropped it as searing pain shot through his hand. "Damn!" He rubbed his burning palm and stared at the innocent looking stone glaring up at him from the pavement.

"Eric," he said into his morpher. "Meet me out behind the parking lot where all the crates are, something's definitely going on. Oh, and call an ambulance…there's a dead body."

He cut the connection and stooped down to get a better look at the man's clothing. It wasn't something that one would normally see in a department store window, for that matter it wasn't something that one would see in the 21st century at all. It looked more like the material that the Time Force uniforms were made out of and that meant….whoever the man was, he was from the future.

And that could only mean one thing; trouble was coming Wes' way. His stomach clenched up at the thought of what might be coming. He felt his knees give way and his sank the rest of the way to the ground until he was resting beside the lifeless body. Lost in his thoughts and immersed in a tidal wave of pain he was only vaguely aware of the sound of approaching footsteps.

"Wes?" Eric's voiced sounded so far away.

"Wes, are you ok?"

He shook his head, trying to clear the wave of nausea that had suddenly struck.

"Gotta see the Doc," he heard himself say.

"Yeah," He felt Eric grab his arm and pull him to his feet.

"Trouble is coming," he pointed to the body on the ground, then to the stone still lying where he had dropped it. "We might need that."

"What is it," asked Eric bending to pick it up but quickly dropping it and drawing back his had as if it had burned him too.

"Don't know," said Wes, his head suddenly clearing, rendering him able to think again. "But it's hot."

* * *

I know, I really need to start another fic like I need another hole in my head. But this fic is already completed. So, I'll probably be posting it on a weekly basis. So, see that pretty little blueish button? Let me know what you think and if I should continue... 


	2. Paths of Fate

As promised, here is the next chapter...

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Wes lay on the couch with his stomach in knots. He had tried to force down the tomato soup Philips had made him, but in the end he had gone to bed hungry and sick. He lay in bed for hours staring up at the ceiling and watching the moonlight dance across the walls, but his bed had become hot and uncomfortable so he had moved to the couch downstairs, but it was just as miserable there. Cursing and shaking, he threw the blanket onto the floor and rolled off the couch to join it. 

_What's wrong with me? This has never happened before!_

He curled up into a tight ball as a sharp, white hot pain shot through his head. Squeezing his eyes shut as tightly as humanly possible he called out for his father.

"Dad!"

There was no answer. _That man could sleep through a tornado, _he thought miserably.

"Philips!"

The good natured butler appeared in the doorway in no time with his bathrobe hanging limply over a pair of plaid pajamas, and his disheveled hair sticking out in all directions.

"Sorry to wake you" mumbled Wes from the floor. "But I need a doctor."

Philips stared at his young charged curled up in the fetal position and clinging desperately to the couch, covered in sweat and shaking slightly.

"Don't move Master Wes, I'll go get the car ready and wake your father." The butler disappeared around the corner and Wes pitched over sideways. He lay there moaning until he heard his father on the stairs, talking hurriedly on the phone to the doctor.

"No, I don't know what it is, "he heard his father say. "I'm not sure if it's a side effect. If it is it's not one that we've dealt with before….No, you're the doctor, not me! We'll be there in twenty minuets!" Wes heard his father slam the phone back into its cradle by the door and seconds later he felt an arm around his waist.

"Come on, Wesley," said Mr. Collins as he grabbed Wes's arm and helped him to his feet.

"The car is around front Master Wes," said Philips, reappearing in the doorway. "And your father…" He spotted Alan Collins helping his son put on his jacket and broke off.

"This way," he said, rushing forward to help. He grabbing Wes other arm and made a bee line for the front door.

Wes felt his father snap the seat belt around him and the door slam as he climbed in next to him.

"Don't worry," he heard Philips call from the driver's seat, "we'll be there before you know it."

Wes nodded, the motion causing him to feel nauseous.

"Dad," he said urgently grabbing his stomach and leaning forward to empty its contents on the floor of the car.

He heard his father bite back a curse as he passed him a plastic bag, "use that next time," he said flatly.

Wes leaned back and closed his eyes. It was a short ride to the hospital, but it turned out to be the longest fifteen minuets of his life.

------

"Are you sure," asked Tommy as he wearily rubbed his face with his hands.

Hayley nodded but remained silent.

"So what exactly does it all mean?"

"It means someone is tampering with the morphing grid."

"How is that even possible?" Tommy moved forward to stare at Hayley's figures on the computer screen, but they all blurred together into a meaningless jumble of numbers.

"I don't know" she said quietly. "It's happened before remember? When we were in college."

Tommy shook his head as he racked his brain trying to remember what his friend was talking about but he came up empty."

"No, I don't remember."

Hayley sighed, "It was when the Time Force Rangers first came to this century. There was a surge in the grid as their advanced technology merged with the technology of our time. It wasn't really tampering because once they morphed the first time everything settled in like it had always been part of our time."

Tommy nodded, not fully comprehending.

"So…someone from the future is tampering with the morphing grid?"

"No, it's not actually a tangible grid you can tamper with…without the right technology of course. I'm not sure what's going on…but I do think that someone from the future may be involved because it's more like an energy spike than anything else."

Tommy clicked the mouse and the screen changed from the baffling table of numbers to a comprehensible chart. "Yeah, and a powerful one from the looks of it."

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Silver City 5021

Danica perched on the balcony, staring out over the moonlit city. She was so lost in thought that she failed to hear the approaching footsteps until it was too late.

"Aaaahh!"

A hand closed over her mouth and another grabbed her throat.

"Listen up," said a steely voice. "Tell your people to back off. You saw what we did to your friend Gavin?"

Danica nodded as the man gave her a violent shake.

"Good. If you don't tell the Guardians to lay off, your friend Asher will be next!"

The stranger shoved Danica away, the force of the movement sent her careening wildly into the balcony. She tried to grab the railing to keep her balance but the slick stone slid away under her fingertips and she found herself going over the wall. A hand grabbed her arm just in time as the ground disappeared from beneath her. She looked down at the deadly drop to the sharp rocks below then up into the face of her rescuer.

"Asher!"

"Hold on, I got you!"

Grunting with effort, he grabbed the thick material on the back of her jacket and pulled her back over the railing to safety.

"What happened?" He asked as they collapsed onto the cold stone floor in a heap.

His female companion through her arms around his neck and clung to his chest. "There was a man!" She looked around for a sign that would betray the man had been there only seconds before, but the small hallway was devoid of all life except for her and Asher.

Bewildered at his miraculous escape she nearly gave herself whiplash looking back and forth. "He was there…"

Asher looked around to where Danica was pointing but saw nothing to indicate that there had been anyone in the room with her. He slowly turned his piercing golden gaze back to her icy blue one, disentangled himself from her and moved to the balcony and peered cautiously over the edge.

"Asher…" she said with a small hint of worry in her voice.

He turned around and, gracing her with a small smile, tucked a stray strand of Danica's chestnut hair behind her ear before taking a deep breath and began, in what he hoped, was a soothing voice. But no matter how hard he tried he couldn't keep all the skepticism out of his voice.

"You must have been imagining him…" he began, a slight frown creeping onto his features no matter how hard he tried to keep it away.

"No! He pushed me over the railing and he…" she broke off at the look on her friend's face. "You don't believe me, do you?" She asked incredulously, hating his tone of voice_. He can't let got of his work for one second, and he's using that damn dog trainer voice on me! He's treating me like a child, _she thought. _He_ _thinks I'm going crazy._

"Well…you have seen people that weren't there before…it's a side effect of your odd genetic code…kind of like those feelings you get sometimes."

"Yeah," she spat as she stood and walked away from Asher in disgust, "except they're never wrong."

"I didn't say they were…"

Danica swatted at her nose, "well you know what? I've got another bad feeling." She turned to glare at Asher, and had he been anyone else he would have withered under that stare. "I think something terrible has happened to Tristan too."

Asher smiled and shook his head, "no, he's just late checking in, that's all. Besides, Jedediah said that he was going to do a search to see where Tristan turned up at, I'm sure he's fine."

At that moment the small stone bracelet that Asher wore on his left wrist began to beep. He held it up to his mouth and spoke into it, never taking his eyes off of Danica.

"Go ahead Jedediah."

The voice on the other line hesitated, "I--I've found Tristan…"

A chill went down Danica spine as she caught the slight tremor in Jedediah's voice, something was obviously wrong.

"Where," asked Asher, completely oblivious to sound of horror in their friend's voice.

"He's traveled back in time to the twenty-first century, 2005 to be exact, but….I can only get a lock on his morpher. Tristan is…he's dead."

The smirk vanished from Asher's face and his mouth dropped open in horror, "what?" he said into the stone, not quite believing his own ears.

"There's more," said Jedediah, panic evident in his voice. "The _Stone_ has fallen into the hands of a native…and the Watchers are already on their way to retrieve it."

"NO! We have to stop them," said Danica, fear taking hold of her heart. She reached out and grabbed Asher's arm. "Asher, we have to go after them!"

He merely nodded. "Jedediah, inform the others of the situation and meet us at the ruins."

"Right."

Jedediah cut the connection and Asher turned his attention back to Danica. The look in his eyes sent shivers of fear down Danica's spine once more. Asher was the strong silent type, preferring to let his actions speak louder than his words, and he never let his emotions get the best of him. He wasn't the type of man to wear his heart on his sleeve, but standing there, staring into his warm golden gaze as Jedediah's words sank in she saw something she had never seen before. She knew the look in his eyes, she made it a point to memorize his emotional patterns, and that uncharacteristic flicker of fear, though just for an instant, was enough to make her blood turn to ice. If Asher was afraid, something horrible was wrong.

"Let's go!" He grabbed her hand and broke into a run towards the nearest exit.

"You know what will happen if the Watcher's get their hands on the _Stone_ don't you?"

"They'll have the power to destroy us and everything else, "said Asher not even bothering to slow down as they rounded the corner. "It'll be another Armageddon!"

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Reefside 2005

Tommy sat upright in the bed, the nightmare fading slowly from his memory. He threw the covers off and got up, heading for the bathroom. Clicking on the light he reached out and turned the shower on.

_It's only 3 am_, he thought as he glanced back into the bedroom at the clock on the nightstand.

Stripping off his black boxers he stepped into the icy cold water and shivered as it hit his warm skin. He put his face under the water and closed his eyes.

He could still see the dream vividly, almost as if he were still sleeping.

_Kimberly, her cold unseeing eyes glaring up at the ceiling, her head smashed into the ground…_

_He called out to her, ran towards her, but got no closer._

"_Kimberly!" His voiced echoed emptily around him in the darkness as he struggled vainly against his captors._

_Then he saw Kira, his student and yellow ranger, falling to the ground, struck down by another of the Watchers, joining Kimberly and so many others in death…_

_He watched as another Watcher lashed out with venomous force and felled Conner. Ethan, in a valiant attempt to avenge his fallen comrades was taken down in an instant…_

_Tommy felt himself screamed, as he watched others falling all around him. One by one they were all claimed by the deadly accurate swords of the Watchers. One by one they left him alone. One by one they killed __**him**__ a little more…._

"_Kimberly!!"_

Tommy's eyes flew open as the image of Kimberly came unbidden once more to his mind.

"Damn," he said as he turned off the water and reached for a towel. He hadn't thought about Kimberly in days. It was a conscious effort that he made, there were too many bad memories associated with that particular part of his past, too many memories that he didn't want to drag to the surface.

He slowly wiped the condensation off of the mirror until he was staring at his reflection. For a moment he didn't recognize the man that stared back at him, it wasn't someone he knew.

_Is that really me?_ He asked himself in shock. He didn't look like the handsome young man he had once been, in fact he looked old, much older that his twenty seven years. There were wrinkles on his forehead and bags under his eyes.

_That's not me. It can't be…he looks so…old and worn out._

Tommy sighed as he finally looked away and cut off the light. _Get some rest Oliver, you'll feel better in the morning,_ he told himself.

He lay down on the bed again and pulled the cover up to his chin, but he didn't close his eyes for fear of what he might see. He turned over to stare out the window when the phone started ringing.

_Who in their right mind calls at this time of night?_ He was going to let the answering machine pick up but the incessant ringing hurt his head.

"Hello," he said irritably as he snatched the cordless phone off of the table.

For a moment the line was silent then timidly, almost as if the person on the other line knew how he felt, replied.

"Tommy…"

The phone almost dropped from his hand as recognition flooded his senses. _It can't be! Not after all of this time!_

"Kimberly?"

"Tommy I-I had a nightmare. You died. I just…it seemed so real…I just had to hear your voice, I'm sorry for calling so late."

_Kim had a nightmare too? What the hells going on?_ _No…cool it Oliver, It's just a coincidence._

"It's okay Kim…I'm okay…and so are you…." _For now anyway, _he added quietly to himself.

"I'm sorry I shouldn't have called…"

"No," said Tommy, feeling completely sincere. "I'm glad you did…we need to talk anyway."

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Silver Hills 2005

Alan Collins sat in the waiting room at the hospital staring blankly out into space with his phone up to his ear. He held his son's jacket on his lap and absently fingered the stone in its left pocket. He could feel the heat emanating from it and it sent a sense of unease through him.

"Zaskin," he said to the man on the other end of the phone line, "I want you to run some more tests on this thing. Try and figure out what it really is."

"Of course. I'll be there shortly to get it."

"Right and bring something to carry it in…it's still kind of warm to the touch."

He ended the conversation as a nurse appeared around the corner from where they had taken Wesley.

"Excuse me." He said, motioning to her. "Can you tell me anything about my son?"

"I'm sorry, but I haven't been in with the doctors. You'll have to wait until one of them gets through and comes out." She gave him a reassuring smile and walked away.

Alan sat back and rubbed the stone through the fabric of the jacket.

"Ah!" He said jerking his hand back as the jacket feel away and his hand came into full contact with the stone.

He recovered it with the jacket and placed it in the empty chair next to him. Casting a glance back at it, he stood and walked away in search of coffee.

With his back turned he never saw the Watcher sneak around the corner and grab the jacket and steal away with the stone.

* * *

See that little purple button... 


	3. Chasing Memories

Reefside 2005

Tommy gently placed the phone back into its cradle as his mind went careening off into space with shock. He hadn't been expecting two disturbing phone calls in the same night, especially from the two people he rarely spoke to anymore.

The first call had come completely out of the blue from the last person he ever expected to hear from. He had no idea how she had even gotten his phone number in the first place, but if he had to make any bets, his money would be on Jason. The former red ranger kept in touch with Kimberly more than any other member of their team and it stood to reason that if his 'little sister' needed anything, anything at all, Jason would give it to her. That included Tommy's phone number, of which he had sworn an oath never to release to _anyone _for reasons better left unsaid.

Tommy sighed. The call had been unexpected but not completely unwelcome. He had loved to hear her voice after so long and the way she said his name still sent shivers down his spine…

_Stop it Oliver! _He chided himself. _You know its over, so why do you continue to torture yourself like this?_

Why? It was simple, his mind could forget his past but his heart couldn't, and there would always been an empty hole in his heart left by Kimberly that could never be filled or replaced.

He shook his head and opened his closet. There was no use dwelling on the past, what was done was done and there was no changing it, and right now he had more important things to worry about.

The second call had not been so pleasant. He had hoped that he would never have to hear from the Quantum ranger again, not that he wasn't a good guy, but nothing good ever came from their conversations. Usually, it meant that Tommy was once again being sucked back into the ranger world because the fate of the galaxy was a stake, or some new villain was on the rise. And sure enough Eric was a creature of habit; he never called just to chat, only when the world was in jeopardy, this time from something known as a "Watcher".

"I really hate this," he told the clothes hanger as he viciously yanked a shirt from it. "Why is it always me? It seems like when every thing is suddenly going my way, I get pulled back into the fighting." He sighed, "I don't have time to go running to Silver Hills! And I know that the kids are just going to be thrilled about spending the last part of their senior year there."

He groaned as he pulled the shirt over his head and felt a tug of pain from an old wound that had never fully healed. "I'm getting too old for this."

Viciously clicking off the light, he marched downstairs and, equally as vicious, flipped on the kitchen light. He turned on the coffee pot and hit the ON button for the TV.

"A body was found yesterday morning in behind the main headquarters for Bio Lab industries in Silver Hills. Police were called to the scene when an employee stumbled across the man on his way home from work. Officials are not releasing any information about the mysteries surrounding the death at this time, and no further information has been released. Bio Lab representatives refused to comment. In other, news gas prices are expected to skyrocket this weekend…"

Tommy rolled his eyes and hit the mute button to tune out the rest of the report.

"Nothing mysterious," he mumbled miserably into his coffee cup, "just evil beings at work in our own backyard again. No need to worry though, Tommy's on the case."

------

Silver Hills 2005

Wes stared blankly up at the ceiling trying to pretend that the nurse wasn't bothering him, but after her fifth failed attempt at sticking the IV in his arm he was ready to tell her to stick it somewhere else.

"I'm so sorry," she said in her sickly sweet voice. "I'm still new at this."

Wes gave her a sideways glance but never returned her smile. _You're new, I couldn't tell. OW!_

He glared at her as she stuck him again, harder this time in an attempt to get it right.

"I don't mean to be rude," he said through clenched teeth. "But do you think maybe one of the older nurses could do it?"

The woman's face fell as she nodded and turned away, but Wes was too sick to even care if he had hurt her feelings or not. She was the reason he hated hospitals, people came there to get the doctors to make them feel better but most of the time they always ended up feeling worse.

_Maybe I should have just stayed on the floor at home. Anything could have been better than this!_

"There you go, hon." He heard another nurse say.

"Wha?" He looked down at the IV that was now firmly attached to his arm and halfway smiled.

_Didn't even feel it going in. That's what I'm talking about._

------

Wes woke a few hours later to the sound of his father pacing near the window.

"Dad," he said weakly.

"Wesley, no, lay down your still weak."

"What happened?" he asked looking around in confusion. Why was he in the hospital? Why did he feel so sick? "Dad, why am I here?"

"Don't you remember?" Asked Alan in alarm.

"No…the last thing I remember is…there was a body…behind the parking lot…it was so hot…I couldn't breathe…"

Alan Collins stared at his son in disbelief, what was wrong with him? This couldn't be another side effect of the accident, surly the doctors would have told them if memory loss would incur, but then again they never said anything about him getting sick months later either. This had all started when Wes found that man in the parking lot…and that damn stone…

"Just relax; everything will come back in time. You'll be fine," he said, not quite believing the words even as they left his mouth.

------

Millennium City 3005

Jen sat at the end of the long table, as far away from Alex as she could possible get without seeming like she was avoiding him.

_Too late for that, _she mused as she stared at the rigidness of his profile. _It's been four years and we still haven't talked about it..._

Not that there was anything left to be said between them. He knew how she felt and he knew that there was nothing he could do to change it, but after everything was said and done Jen was beginning to wish that he had at least made an effort to speak to her. Anything would have been better than nothing…

"Lieutenant Scotts?" Jen was pulled out of her thoughts as Captain Logan's voice brought her back to the present.

"I'm sorry, what?"

Logan frowned. "I asked if you're alright."

"Oh, yes sir," she replied, feeling about an inch tall for being brought out in front of the all the assembled officers.

_Focus Jen!_

"Good." He turned away from her, back to the screen behind him. "As I was saying, this breach in security has caused a ripple in the timeline that is beginning to effect the past. Eventually, if it is left unchecked, it will start to alter the future as we know it."

"Does this really warrant our involvement?" Asked an officer to Jen's left. "Perhaps we should just let the rangers of the past deal with it and be done. I honestly don't think that our getting involved is necessary."

Logan sighed, "I wish I could say the same thing, however it is the job of Time Force to protect the timeline. And it is already too late to be thinking about getting involved, we don't have a choice anymore."

He pointed to another screen, "history clearly shows that five Time Force officers traveled back in time to help with this threat to the future. Unfortunately, the rest of the text that we retrieved this information from was lost centuries ago so we have no idea how the battle ended."

The man to Jen's left snorted with contempt, "well isn't that convenient?"

Logan ignored him. "I have assembled a team to send back as soon as the time ship is ready." He turned to Jen. "Are you and your team prepared to go?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, you'll meet at the ship at approximately 0800 tomorrow. Dismissed."

Jen stood and started to leave when something that the captain had said came floating back to her. "Sir, you said that you were sending five officers. May I ask who the fifth officer is?"

The captain smiled at her and motioned to the man sitting a few seats away. "I'm sending Alex with you as the new black ranger."

Jen's mind went completely blank. Alex? How could he? He knew their history, how was Jen supposed to function in the 21st century with both Wes and Alex? More to the point how long could those two go without getting into a fight over her and seriously maiming one another?

"Sir," she started, but Logan's hand shot up, silencing her.

"The decision is final Captain."

Jen nodded, hoping that the horror she was feeling didn't register on her face, then turned to look at her former fiancée. He sat quietly in his chair, staring back at her, unblinking, his face carefully devoid of all emotion.

_Yeah, _she thought bitterly_, that's the Alex that I've come to know all too well. What happened to the old Alex? The man I feel in love with?_

The prospect of seeing Wes again was suddenly dimmed by the shadow of Alex, they hadn't even left yet and she was already wishing that it was over.

_He's sitting right there,_ she screamed at herself. _Right there in front of you but he might as well be dead…as distant as he has become….there is no way that this is going to work…_

She could see trouble brewing from a millennium away and there was nothing she could do but stare at the man that would most likely be the cause of all her problems.


	4. Familiar Faces

Silver Hills 2005

Eric stood guard outside of Wes's hospital room, his sharp eyes picking up even the smallest movement from the people milling around him. He wasn't sure why Mr. Collins had placed a guard on Wes as there was nothing to indicate that he was in any sort of danger, but whatever it was, Eric knew it had something to do with the body Wes had found the day before. Everything had started to go wrong after that. Wes suddenly falling ill, the strange explosion at Bio Lab earlier that morning that had completely destroyed half of the building…and Mr. Collins sudden change in behavior. Eric couldn't quite put his finger on what was so different about him, but he knew it was there. The way he barked at his men, the way he suddenly held himself like there was something to hide and the odd look in his eyes were all new to Eric. Maybe Wes was right, maybe something bad was coming and this was only the beginning.

Cursing silently under his breath Eric turned and entered the room where his friend lay, unconscious, and surrounded by doctors.

Wes' skin was pasty white and he looked so helpless lying there in the hospital bed, nothing at all like the capable warrior that Eric knew he was.

"Can I help you," asked one of the nurses quietly when she spotted Eric standing just inside the open door.

Eric turned at the sound of her voice, "have the doctors found out anything yet?"

She shook her head, "no, I'm afraid not, but I'm going to have to ask you to step back outside."

"Of course," Eric nodded and went back out to his post, slightly bemused that the doctors had yet to make a diagnosis of Wes' condition. It wasn't like it was some sort of extraterrestrial virus that they had never seen before…..or was it?

Eric didn't know, but he planned on finding out.

------

Reefside 2005

Fresh morning light streamed through the curtained windows and illuminated the spotless white kitchen. At least, it _had_ been spotless until the invasion of the insatiable trio of teenagers had overtaken it fifteen minuets before. It was only 7:27 on Saturday morning but Tommy was already wishing it was Monday. He watched in dismay as his students devoured his last box of cheerios.

"Didn't you guys eat before you came here," he asked when he noticed Conner eyeing a box of strawberry pop tarts.

"No," said Ethan in between mouthfuls of cereal. "Why should we buy something to eat when we can eat here for free?"

Tommy glared at the blue ranger and snatched the pop tarts out of Conner's reach.

"Hey!"

Tommy shot him a mock glare, "I've got to eat too you know."

Conner shrugged as he downed his third glass of orange juice. "So what was so important that we had to hurry over here? You kinda sounded like the world was coming to and end or something." Conner put down his glass, "please tell me the world is not coming to an end. I have a soccer tournament tomorrow."

"The world is not coming to an end….that I know of….but we are taking a little, shall we call it a field trip, to Silver Hills."

His announcement was met by a chorus of "what's and why's".

"Because the world might be coming to an end," he said, adding a bit of unnecessary drama to his voice.

"Dr. O, you do realize that we graduate in a month right?"

He shook his head, "what does that have to do with anything Ethan?"

"Well, if we take this little field trip of yours, will we live to walk across the stage?"

"He has a point," said Kira, reaching for the milk carton and finally deciding to enter the conversation.

"Guys, this is serious! Stop eating! Look, I don't want to go anymore than you do, but the fate of the world is at stake here. Now I don't have all the details but I'm telling you now this is not going to be easy."

"The fate of the world," said Kira, giving her teacher a hard look.

"Too dramatic?" He asked innocently.

The singer shook her head, "nope, not at this point in the game."

"Good, we leave tomorrow."

Tommy sighed, there was that chorus again. Couldn't they do anything without having someone questioning him all the time? He opened the pop tarts then turned to the red ranger.

"Conner, I am going to check all of your bags before we go, just to make sure that we don't have another incident like the last time."

"Dr. O," said Conner instantly going into defense mode. "I told you, Frank had never done anything like that before. Besides you can't prove that he was the one who ate Eric's stupid bird in the first place."

"I don't care Conner, there are to be no stowaways on this mission. That means Frank the Menace has to stay home!"

Conner glared into his cereal, "fine." He said pointedly.

"Now," said Tommy, "I want you all to be here early tomorrow morning, say around six."

"What are we supposed to tell our parents," asked Ethan.

Tommy turned to the blue ranger, "I don't know Ethan, be creative, I'm sure you'll think of something."

------

Silver Hills 2005

Eric picked his way through the charred ruins of what had once been the biggest of all of Bio Lab's laboratories. Now it was a burned out shell surrounded by yellow police tape. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, wasn't even sure he would know what it was if he found it.

After thirty minuets of fruitless hunting he sat down on a pile on debris and hung his head in his hands. Frustrated and angry he lashed out at a pile of rubble with his foot. It flew from its resting place and slammed against the wall with a loud, echoing crash. Eric immediately dropped to his hands and knees to investigate the object that had been hidden underneath the table, and a small smile formed at the corners of his lips.

"Bingo," he whispered to the small object.

Standing, he pulled a cell phone out of his vest pocket and started to dial. After three rings the person on the receiving end picked up.

"Tommy Oliver? This is Eric Myers, sorry to bother you again…"

------

Jen smiled. It felt so good to be back in the twenty first century. Everything around her was so familiar and welcoming. She stood on the rocks and watched the waves crashing onto the beach like she had a million times before.

"Jen," said a voice from behind her. "We should get going if we're planning on making it to the city before sundown."

She turned to see Trip smiling at her. _He's glad to be back too, _she thought happily.

"Alright, let's move out." She sent a sideways glance in the general direction of Alex before walking away towards the road. She wondered if he was going to stop her and tell her that he was in charge, seeing as how he outranked them all, but he didn't. Instead he fell into step at the very back of the small group; his eyes trained firmly on the ground in front of him, and followed them away from the time ship towards the ancient city of Silver Hills.

Lost in her thoughts she didn't see the car until it had almost gone by.

"Wait!" She yelled as she ran forward and threw out her arms. "Stop!"

The car swerved but never slowed down as Jen ran half heartedly after it. "Why don't people ever stop!"

"Maybe it's because we're dressed funny," offered Tip, motioning towards their white Time Force uniforms. "I wouldn't pick us up either."

Jen sighed, "But its five miles to the city. It'll take us till dark to get there!"

"Then we'd better go," said Lucas walking past her.

They waked the five miles in silence with Jen occasionally glancing back to make sure Alex was following. He had donned his trademark shades shortly after they had made it to the road. Jen wasn't sure where he was looking anymore, because she couldn't see his eyes through the dark lenses, but she knew he was staring at her, she could feel his eyes boring holes into her back as she walked.

She rolled her eyes and slowed her pace until Alex caught up and they were walking in perfect step.

"Are you alright," she asked casually.

"Fine," he answered.

"Fine? That's it? You're just fine?"

"What do you want me to say, Jennifer?"

Jen exploded, four years of unresolved emotions surfacing at once. "I don't know! Anything! What happened to you? You-you used to be someone I could talk to, I knew what you were feeling by looking at your face, but now…now I don't know anymore, I don't know you!"

Alex continued to walk, never breaking his stride as he kept his eyes fixed on a distant point beyond the team, beyond Jen.

She bit back the urge to slap him; his cold detachment on the subject of them infuriating her. After all she had given him, this was what she was left with, nothing but anger and unanswered questions.

"People change, but maybe you never knew me at all," was all he had to say. He couldn't help but glance at her face; he couldn't help but see the pain in her eyes at his words. _Just like last time, _he thought bitterly.

"I don't know you at all," she whispered, fighting back tears, before running away to catch up with the others.

_Tears after everything that I've done? I don't deserve them. _He thought bitterly.

"I don't either," he whispered, echoing his hollow thoughts and training his eyes once more on some distant point on the horizon.

------

Eric cursed the stoplight for all that it was worth. Why was it that when he was in a hurry he caught all the lights red, but when he wasn't they were all green?

"Hurry up," he yelled in frustration.

He banged his hands on the steering wheel, "stupid light." Looking to his left he spotted a group of people walking towards the cross walk, and as they got closer he recognized the uniforms.

"Jen?" He rolled down his window, "hey, Jen!"

The pink ranger looked up and relief washed through her. "Eric, are we glad to see you!"

"Wish I could say the same," he muttered as the group hurried over to his SUV. _Guess Wes was right, we must be in big trouble._

"What are you guys doing here," he asked trying to get a good look at the man near the back. The glow from the afternoon sun was to the man's back and blinding Eric, forcing him to look away.

"We're here because Silver Hills is in danger," said Jen in a rush. "We need to speak to Wes. Where is he?"

"Umm…I'm sorry but you can't talk to Wes right now, he's…in the hospital."

He saw Jen's face light up in alarm. "What happened? Is he ok?"

"Easy. He's ok for now. I can take you there if you like." He had barely got the words out of his mouth before the rangers were climbing into his vehicle.

Jen leaned out the window, "come on Alex!"

The fifth man reluctantly stepped forward and climbed into the seat next to Jen. He shut the door but didn't remove his sunglasses, but he didn't have to for Eric to recognize him. He knew it was Wes' doppelganger from the future, all except for the hair, that was different, and if Eric hadn't known any better he would have sworn the man was Wes.

"What are you waiting for? Let's go," said Jen.

"Right," said Eric, glad that the light had finally decided to turn green.

------

Alan Collins hung up the phone and rubbed his temples trying to head off the migraine that he felt forming there.

"Zaskin," he said to the man sitting opposite him, "are you completely sure?"

"Yes sir. We ran the test three different times and each time they came back positive. I think we've finally found it sir, the key to finally unlocking the formula." He paused to take in his boss's reaction. "Sir, we could have hit a gold mine."

Alan smiled, "do we need the stone for any further tests?"

"No, we have everything we need in the lab, including the tests from the stone. We can duplicate anything we need that we don't have."

"Good, you may go get started," said Alan. There was no need to mention that he had lost the stone if the scientist could duplicate its structure in the lab, so he kept quite and watched the man go, there was no need for him to know. Wes would want to know what had happened to it, but only if he remembered it once the doctors had cured him of…of whatever was wrong with him.

Sighing, Alan picked up the phone and dialed the hospital. "Hello? Dr. Mires? This is Alan Collins I was wondering if you had found anything out about Wes' condition…No? What do you mean no...Oh I see…what kind of paperwork….what kind of procedures…is that really necessary Doctor….Yes, of course I'll be right there."

Alan made up his mind quickly during the drive back to the hospital; if Wes didn't ask what had happened to the stone Alan had no intention of telling him. He knew that his son would never approve of what Alan had in store for the information that had gathered from the stone. He knew that Wes would be furious, and most likely would never forgive him. For some reason his son just couldn't see the forest for the trees. He always said that money wasn't everything…but it wasn't about money this time. It was so much bigger than that, if only Wes could see it….

No, it was best he didn't know…at least not until it was too late to do anything about it.

* * *

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